Anne Hidalgo looks increasingly set to keep Paris in Socialist hands as a poll suggests she will win the March mayoral race by 54 per cent to 46 against Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet

Anne Hidalgo, the Socialist candidate for mayor of Paris who recently launched a broadside against a "boastful" Boris Johnson, has strengthened her lead in polls against Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, her centre-Right rival, as the two go head to head for first time in televised debate on Wednesday night.

With less than two months to go before Paris chooses a new mayor, an Ifop poll released on Wednesday suggests Miss Hidalgo is set to beat Miss Kosciusko-Morizet, known as NKM, by 54 per cent to 46 per cent in the second round on March 30.

The centre-Right candidate, a former environment minister and campaign spokeswoman of Nicolas Sarkozy, the former conservative president, has been blighted by communication gaffes and splits within the Parisian Right behind figures including Dominique Tiberi, the son of Jacques Tiberi, the former mayor of Paris.

Whereas recently polls put Miss Kosciusko-Morizet ahead in round one, Ifop found that Miss Hidalgo was now on course to win 39.5 per cent of the vote in the first round, compared to 36.5 per cent for NKM and eight per cent for Wallerand de Saint-Just, the far-Right Front National candidate.

"The stakes are incredibly high for NKM. She must at all costs get back into first place (in round one) to try and create a dynamic," said Frédéric Dabi, le directeur général de l'Ifop.

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Even if she came out on top in round one, Miss Kosciusko-Morizet would still be hampered by the fact that the Front National is likely to reach the second round too, taking away precious votes.

In Wednesday's TV debate on LCI, a cable channel, candidates were expected to be grilled on some of their more controversial plans for the French capital.

Last week, Miss Higalgo infuriated residents of Avenue Foch, one of Paris' most prestigious and historic avenues off the Arc de Triomphe, by announcing her intention to turn it into a green corridor all the way to the Bois de Boulogne peppered with social housing to promote "social mixity".

Residents of Paris' billionaires row, who include Russian oligarchs, Middle Eastern royals and relatives of African leaders, were apoplectic at the plan, saying it would turn the avenue into the Socialist's "Luna Park".

NKM vehemently opposes this idea, but wants to pedestrianise entire other districts of Paris, including Montmartre and Belleville. On Monday, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, the ex-First Lady, turned up to one of her meetings in support.

The poll came days after Miss Hidalgo traded blows with Boris Johnson after saying Paris beats London hands down in tourism, start-ups, shopping, safety and as a place to live with families.

She later tone down her comments, saying: "Yes, the two cities are competitors – but if we also work together, we can be a global partnership to reckon with."